Put down the soup spoon, these tasty tidbits are good for much more than a bit o’ chowdah!
Well…
with a wee, tiny bit of help.
I first wrote about making these seasoned crackers for a little fête we were having to welcome in the new year. Of course, then, I used a packet of ranch dressing mix from the market.
Now, I come armed with a bottle of 
Chip Dip Seasoning from my friendly neighborhood Spice House, along with a few other herbs and seasonings to help round out the flavor.
INGREDIENTS
•9 oz pkg Oyster Crackers
•1 tbsp Spice House Chip Dip mix
•1/4 tsp black (Tellicherry) pepper
•1/4 tsp Aleppo pepper
•1/8 tsp seasoned salt
•1/2 tsp dried parsley
•1/4 tsp garlic powder
•1/2 cup veggie oil
A note on the spices and seasonings I use: I am (very) lucky to have two pretty darned decent spice merchants within easy driving distance of my house, The Spice House, and Penzeys. Penzeys has the closer 
store (they actually have stores all around the country, do a search and you may find one near you), but I love the feel and the selection of the Spice House’s ‘mother store’ on Old World Third Street in Milwaukee. Both companies have easy to use web sites and shipping is very reasonable – especially when you compare prices to what you would pay at your normal market.
Back to the crackers.
Heat your oven to 200º.
Arrange the crackers and the seasonings in a large baking pan (a large anodized roaster is perfect for this), then add the oil, give it all a good stir to mix and let rest for 15 minutes.
Pop into your nicely warmed oven and bake for ten minutes.
Remove, give it all another nice stir, then back into the oven for ten more minutes.
Remove from the oven, set aside to cool, then store in gallon sized zipper bags until needed. Or, until the crackers call your name in the wee, small hours of the morning and you decide you need just a little sumpin’ sumpin’ to see you through ’til morning.
It’s all good, they’re small, but loaded with flavor. I offer them as a munchie when folk drop by, and you could, of course, always add them to your bowl of chowdah, soup, or chili.
And then, there are those wee, small hours o’ the morning…